A friend of mine is a female realtor who meets a client for a listing appointment. She has never met him before, she is alone, and she has an uneasy feeling.

A female running friend squeezes in a quick run after work. She is alone, she doesn’t tell anyone where she is going and a car pulls up beside her.

Another female friend makes a quick stop at a store near her house. In the parking lot, a man is crouched down between two cars.

Thankfully, nothing happens to any of these women. But, its easy to see how a careless mistake can lead to a bad situation.

Since the age of 4, Brett Homann has been studying karate. He is an 8th Degree Black Belt, an International Champion, and a former member of the US Karate Team. He is someone you would want with you in a bad situation. And while we can’t offer that, we can offer the next best thing: 90 minutes of training in how to be aware, in control and to NOT be a victim!

On December 24th, 2011, Hometown Happenings organized the Santa Walk & Run. It was a beautiful December morning and close to 200 people came out to participate in this local holiday tradition. The Run was started in 1982 by just a few Santas who wished to spread holiday cheer as they ran through town in full Santa suits. It remains a fun tradition today and always brings smiles to the faces of onlookers and those driving by.

This year a walk was added and participants could vote on which Northwest Indiana charity they wish to have benefit from the proceeds. Well, the results are in and here are the winners!

At #3 is the Southlake YMCA. They are hoping to use their share of the proceeds to provide equipment for their kids activity room.

At #2 is St. Mary’s Catholic Community School in Crown Point. Hopefully, they can use the money to provide much needed equipment for their classrooms.

At #1 is St. Jude House, a domestic violence shelter located in Crown Point, IN. They hope to use the money to update their Kids Playroom.

Thank You to everyone who came out for the Santa Walk & Run! You made the Santa Walk & run a success! It’s because of your support that we are able to make a difference in the lives of many kids for many years to come! An “extra” donation will also be made to a local anima shelter as many, many people came out to support animals!

For many years, there were just 3 “Santas” who ran every Christmas Eve morning in full Santa suits. You may have seen us. Last year, we had around 60 runners join us in all styles of holiday wear as we raised money for the local animal shelter. This year will be our biggest turn out yet and its success is because of YOU! Thank you! You will not only have a great time, but you will be supporting some worthy local charities as well.

Registration begins at 8 am at Carriage Court. Come early so we can check everyone in. Walgreens is providing Santa hats to the first 50 who register. But, even if you don’t get a hat, there are lots of giveaways from our sponsors including running shirts from the YMCA and a $10 coupon for the Hub Bootery. After the event, carolers from the high school’s “Women’s Advance Chorus” will perform and refreshments will be provided by Carriage Court Pizza.

We have added a bake sale! If you are able, please bring an item to sell and those proceeds will benefit local charities as well.

During the walk and run, please be safe and watch your children. The streets will NOT be closed down, but both the walk and run will have a police escort. The run is a very slow pace so we stay together as a group. Besides, it gives us more time to wave at the onlookers! If you need to drop out of the group, please go to the sidewalk and stay off the road.

Again, thanks for the great response and I will see you Christmas Eve morning!

“A Harry Potter Christmas” will be the last of our storytelling series for 2011. My favorite comment from our last event was “My daughter could not stop talking about how much fun she had.” Many people have also told me how much these events have inspired both their kids and themselves to start reading books they had previously overlooked.

If you have yet to see storyteller Grant Fitch perform at our events, you are in for a real treat! Tickets are now on sale in Crown Point at Carriage Court Pizza at 211 S. East St. They are also being sold at the First United Methodist Church at 352 S. Main St., at Homann Karate Do at 1245 E. North St., and online here.

One of my goals in creating this company was to provide entertainment the whole family could enjoy together. This storytelling series is certainly accomplishing that goal! Thanks to all of you who have made these events a success!